Palaces in disrepair: Royal family 'aren't balancing their books'

Margaret Hodge, chair of the Public Accounts Committee, says the boiler at
Buckingham Palace is "out of date" and the electricity and gas bills "are
huge", as the Queen's royal household is told it could do more to reduce its
costs and increase income

11:32AM GMT 28 Jan 2014

The Queen's royal household could be doing more to reduce its costs and increase income, and needs to get a firmer grip on a backlog of property repairs, a Commons committee has said.

The household also needs to plan and manage its budget better for the long term, a report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) recommended.

Margaret Hodge, the PAC's chairman, also criticised the Treasury for failing to be more actively involved in reviewing the household's financial planning and management.

Ms Hodge said "there is scope for the household to generate more income and reduce its costs further".

She went on to praise it for increasing its income during the last financial year, but added: "However, we think it could do more. Since 2007-08, the household has cut its net costs by 16% in real terms, but 11% of that was achieved by increasing income, and just 5% by reducing expenditure.

"With better commercial expertise in place, we think there is room to do more with less, reducing costs further and supporting the Queen's programme more effectively."

Ms Hodge also highlighted the large amount of work needed to maintain "nationally important heritage properties".

The report gave the example of the Victoria and Albert Mausoleum, a monument of national importance, which has been waiting 18 years for repair work. The document said when assessed in 2012, 39% of the royal estate's buildings were below what the household thought was an acceptable condition - and the current position is likely to be worse.

Ms Hodge added: "...we feel that the Queen has not been served well by the household and by the Treasury, which is responsible for effective scrutiny of the household's financial planning and management.